Brett Wycinski took a huge step forward in his long road to recovery Saturday night.

Seven weeks after suffering a severe brain injury during an intra-squad scrimmage, the Walsh University senior strong safety attended Saturday’s football game against Malone at Fawcett Stadium.

Wycinski underwent surgery to remove part of his skull to relieve pressure on the brain and spent just over a month at Mercy Medical Center. He still must wear a protective helmet.

Further surgery to replace the part of Wycinski’s skull which was removed will be required, possibly a month from now. He has been recovering at home in New Lexington.

“I’m feeling great,” Wycinski said. “I made a lot of progress in the hospital and am pretty much back to normal now.”

Wycinski was injured in a pile up during the Aug. 18 scrimmage. He stood up, but became a bit wobbly and collapsed.

With the exception of the protective helmet, he shows no other signs of the injury.

Wycinski watched the Cavaliers warm up from the corner of the end zone during pregame and joined them in the locker room. During the coin toss, he and some teammates joined hands and stood behind the captains.

“It’s kind of bittersweet,” Wycinski said. “It’s good to be back, see all my friends and be with the team again.

“I just wish I was out there again.”

Wycinski and his family have been grateful for the support from the university. The players have worn his No. 12 on their helmets during games.

“I had a lot of friends come visit me in the hospital,” Wycinski said. “Just getting text messages and posts on Facebook and Twitter, the support was unreal.”